Impact recorder



March 16 1926. 1,577,160

"J. a, BASKERVILLE V IMPACT RcoRDER Filed July 20 1925 4 She ets-Sheet 1 INVEN TOR.

March 16,1926. 1,577,160 1 J. B. BASKERVILLE IMPACT RECORDER Filed July 20 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 16 192 IMPACT RECORDER Fil d July 20, 1925 J. B. QBASKERVILLE :4 Sheefs-Shet 4 a INVENTOR. Lmfiamwwzllj ATTOR EY that other objects atent 1e,

mm: a. Bee

RVILLE, 0F. ROANO, INIA.

rac'r nnooanan.

Application filed July 20,1925. Serial No. 44,824.

To all whom it may concern:

' Be it known that I, J OHN B. BAsKERvInLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Roanoke, in the county of Roanoke and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Impact Recorders, of which-the following is a-specification.

The present invention consists of an impact recorder adapted to make a record of impacts sustained by railway rolling stock when in transit especially such impacts as are due to acceleration or deceleration.

' I ()bjects of the inventionv are to provide impact recording mechanism of the above mentioned character in which one part of the mechanism is movable in correspondence to the movement of rolling stock but-functions to effect a visible record only when the impact is of redetermined intensity; to provide a mar er carrying shaft operable by clock mechanism to progressively feed the marker in harmony with the movements of said mechanism; to provide a marker or impression. maker which, stantly movable in response to the movements of the clock mechanism, is not permitted to function unless. impacts of predetermined intensity are sustained by the rolling stock; and to provide a record sheet carrier normally held in a predetermined position from which position it is displaced by the vibratory. action of the rolling stock and urged into the zone of the marker or impresthe impacts imparted to sion maker when the rolling stock are severe. A co-ordinate object of the invention is to provide a compact structure which operates with precision to make anrecord of impacts sustainedby a railway car or other supporting structure in transit which carries the recorder, to translate the intensity of the imaets and record the time-of their occurrence. \Vhile the above objects are construed to be the principal objects of the invention at the present time, I am nevertheless aware of the invention will be apparent from my co-pending applications, Serial Number 1924, and Serial Number 33,629, filed May 29, 1925, and also from the following-specialthough con- 7 56,668, filed December 18,

fication and accompan ing drawin s in which latter y g Flg. 1 is a top plan view of an impact recorder constructed in accordance with the present invention and showing the lid of the recorder casing removed;

' Fig. view of the recording mechanism in its entirety; i

Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view of the. same; I

'Fig. 4 is a plan view of the manifold record sheets used with the present recorder; Flg. 5 is a detail fragmentary perspective view of one of the record sheet clamps;

2 is a vertical transverse sectional Fig. 6 is a detail fragmentary sectional yiew of the impression maker or stylus used in the present invention;

Fig. 7 is a detail fragmentary side elevational view of a part of the pendulum carry- 'ing structure showing the manner of. mounting the pendulum thereon and illustrating how this structure coacts with the presser bar; and V Fig. 8 is-a detail fragmentaryelevational view of gagement. In the present invention I prefer to employ a casin or housing generally designated 8 'whic may be of the construction one of the abutments and a part ofv the. yoke illustrating their manner of en shown in "the drawings comprislng a body 9 having ahinged lidor closure 10. Suitable means, such as that indicated at 11, may be employed for locking the lid from; being casual y opened and also if desired a handle 12 may be mounted on the top of the lid to facilitate carrying this device.

The recorder perse consis embodying a base 13 which is detachably ts of a frame.

mountedon the bottom of the casing 8 and has extended upwardly from the lateral margins thereof a pair of parallel plates 14, preferably made of metal, one ofwhich is extended aboye the other, as-indicated at 15.1" Mounted between the plates 14 is a platen or record sheet carrier 16 which, in the present instance, consists of the segment of a cylinder and is rotatably mounted upon a shaft 17 the ends of which latter are fixedly mountedin the plates 14. The ends of the platen are spaced from the inner faces. of

the plates 14 by sleeves 18 which are jourments 21 to tie ends of the platen.

naled on the shaft 17. The platen is hollow and is equipped with a detachable rod 19 extending longitudinally thercthrough wh ch serves in the dual capacity of supporting counterbalancing mechanism for the platen, generally desi nated 20, and securing al iglte counterbalance mechanism, in the present instance, is shown as composed of a pair of strips 22 through which both the shaft 14 and rod 19 extend, the strips being secured, approximately midway their ends, by a brace 23 which spans the strips and serves as a support for the upper end of a spring 24. The sprin 24 is of helical construction having the terminal of its upper convolution engaged-through the eye of a bolt 25 the latter extending through'the brace 23 and being equipped with a nut 26. The lower endof the spring is anchored on the base 13 of the frame, as indicated at 27. lveights or pendulums .28 complete the counterbalance mechanism one of each of these being detachably mounted on the inner face and at the lower end of each strip 22. The counterweight mechanism holds the platen in a predetermined position until it sustains an unpaet at which instantthe platen moves lIl correspondence to the extent of movement of the counterweights. Movement is limited, however, by the spring 24 which is of predetermined resistance and the tension of which may be adjusted by movement of the nut 25.

The abutments 21 are shown to be rotatably mounted on the rod 19 and have their peripheries disposed to extend appreciably above the outer periphery of the platen. The abutments are adapted for engagement with a floatingly mounted yoke 29. The

'yoke is mounted within an oblong frame one end of which latter is secured to one of the plates 14 while the opposite end is secured to theopposite plate and its extension 15. The free ends of the yoke extend through complemental openings formed in the base of the frame 30, the terminals of said yoke being bent at right'angles to provide feet 31 which are normally in surface contact with the abutments 21. The top of the yoke 29' carries a pair of pins 32 the latter extendin through corresponding openings formed in the top of the frame 30.

The yoke 29 is yieldingly engaged with the abutments 21 by means of a flat spring 33 which latter is clamped, midway its ends, to a saddle 34, the latter, in conjunction with the spring, 'being detachably engaged with the top of theframe 30. The free ends of the spring impinge against the free ends of the pins 32 to normally force the latter downward-1y and thereby correspondingly move the yoke 29.

A time operated shaft 35 is employed one end of which passes through the extended portion 15 of one of the plates 14 and engages clock mechanism 36 which is mounted on the outer face of said extension 15. The shaft 35' extends through elongated openings 37 formed in the opposite ends of the yoke 29 and has its free terminal pointed, as indicated at 38, the latter being mounted in a complemental socket formed in the shank of a screw 39. The screw 39 is detaehably engaged in the outer end of the frame'30. By providing elongated slots 37 it is apparent that the yoke 29 may move up and down without interference by the shaft 35. The shaft 35 is rotated by the clock mechanism at any predetermined velocity and has adjustably mounted thereon marker means generally designated 40. The marker means, in the present instance, consists of a movable stylus carrier 41 of U- shaped configuration, the stylus, designated 42, being fixedly carried by the vertex of the U and embodying a. roller 43 for impingement against a record sheet 44 mounted upon the platen 16 in a manner more fully hereinafter described. By providing the'roller 43, frictional resistance is reduced to a-mini mum. The carrier 41 slides through a nut 45 screwthreaded upon the shaft 35 and is normally urged upwardly, in order to keep the roller 43 out of contact with the record longitudinal slot 49 formed in the bottom 7 of the frame 30. Consequently, the marker means is permitted to move longitudinally on the shaft 35 but is prevented from 'rotary movement: Since the stylus is normally held in spaced relation to the platen and record sheet carried thereby and is not capable of lateral orrotary motion, it is apparent that any impression upon the sheet 44 must be made by movement of the platen which will urge the record sheet into the zone of the stylus.

The platen 16 is normally held in an inoperative position by suitable locking meehanism'eomprisin a bed plate 50 and a presser bar 51. The ed plate consists of a metal strip detachably secured on the top of the base 13 the ends thereof being bent upwardly at right angles and pivotally eonneetedto the sides of the presser bar. The upper margin of each'side of the presser bar 51 is provided with an intermediate arcuate coil spring 56 which latter is interposed between the part 55 of the frame and the base 13 as illustrated in Fig; 3 of the drawings. The expansive action of thespring 56 normally forces the presser bar upwardly in order to retain the lugs 54 in the recesses 53. \Vhen it is desired to permit the platen to operate, the'presser bar may be depressed downwardly and secured in the depressed position by suitable means. The means em- 7 ployed for this purpose in the present instance consists of a locking bolt 57 the lower end of which is screwthrea'ded to engage an internally screwthreaded sleeve 58 mounted in the base 13. Upward movement of the presser bar on the bolt is limited by an annulus 59 formed on the bolt and positioned above the presser bar. Consequently, when the bolt 57 is urged downwardly and screwthreaded into the sleeve 58, the presser bar 51 is correspondingly moved downwardly against the resistance of the spring 56 and the lugs 54 freed from their slots 53. Consequently, the platen is free to move since the lugs are permitted to oscillate above the arcuate depressions 52 clear ofgthe presser bar. lVhen the bolt is disengaged the presser bar is urged upwardly by'the expansive 'ac tion of the spring 56 and the lugs 54 guided into the slots 53 due to the arcuate formation of the depressions 52.

In order to make a visible record of the oscillations of the platen and thereby translate the movements of the rolling stock, especially as caused by acceleration and deceleration, manifold record sheets 60 are provided which may be of any desired construction and are shown herein to illustrate the application of the invention. The record sheets are provided with openings 61 adjacent one end which are eccentric to. a straight line drawn transversely across the sheet for engagement with staggered studs 62 which are mounted on the eriphery of the platen 16. Byarranging t e studs and openings of the record sheet in this manner it is necessary that the record sheet be placed on the platen in a predetermined position to avoid possibility of error. The sheets are clamped from displacement by suitable brackets 63. Each bracketconsists of a substantially U-shape structure the terminals of which are pivotally engaged with the ends of the platen and are swingable into positionbelow the lateral margins of the platen for clamping the record sheet from dis lace: ment. Qne of the marginal edgesoeach bracket is-reverse'ly folded uponitselfto provide a yielding flange 64 which engages the record sheet. Consequently, the record sheet is yieldingly held on the platen without mutilating the record sheet and positively preventing its accidental displacement.

In use of this device the record sheets are first clamped on the platen 16 in the manner above described and the entire recorder, which is still in a normally locked position, placed in a car of the railway rolling stock or mounted on any other support of which the impacts sustained thereby are to be recorded. After being so positioned the locking bolt 57 is threaded into the sleeve 58 thereby depressing the presser bar 51 in a manner hereinbefore described. Movement of the rolling stock will correspondingly impart an oscillatory motion to the platen 16 in an obvious manner. Since, however, 5 the impression maker is cle'ar of the record sheet mounted on the platen, no record will be made of the vibrations of the rolling stock or other support so long as these vibrations or impacts are normal or do not exceed a predetermined degree of intensity. \Vhen, however, the impacts do exceed this predetermined degree of intensity the platen will be' rocked against the resistance of the spring 24 to a point where the abutments 21 no longer-impinge against the feet of the floating yoke 29 thereby permitting the yoke to move downwardly in its entirety under influence of the'spring 33 and en age the head of the bolt 48. This action epresses .the'stylus carrier 41 against the resistance of the spring 46 and brings the wheel 43 into contact with the record sheet 60. Theoscillations of the platenwhile displaced,as above set forth,will be indicated on the record sheet and the severity of the impact determined by the extent? of the stroke on the record sheet caused when the wheel 43 comes in contact therewith. Furthermore, since the shaft 35 is then operated, and the stylus or marker moved in correspondence to the rotation of the shaft, the time of the occurrence of the impact will be apparent from the location of thestrokes or marks on the record sheet. After the force of theimpact has been spentand the traction. of the rolling stock returned to normal, the platen will correspondingly return to its neutral zone under thecontractile actionof the spring 24. \Vhen the rolling stock which ,carries. the recorder reaches its destination the platen is" again locked by disengaging the bolt 57 and the record sheetsremoved by disengaging the clamping brackets 63 in a manifest manner.

I am, of course, aware that numerous changes in the details of construction, proportion-and arrangement of parts will suggestthemselves to anyone skilled in the art after consideration of my specifications and 130 drawings since I have attempted to herein set forth only one preferred structure for carrying out the principle-of this invention. 1, therefore, reserve the right to make such changes in the details of construction, proportion and'arrangement of parts as come within the 500 e of the present claims.

What is claimed is 1. An impact recorder for railway rolling stock including mechanism carried by the rolling stock and embodying a movable record sheet holder and a time operated marker, the record sheet impinging against the marker when impacts of predetermined intensity are sustained by the rolling stock.

2, An impact recorder for railwa rolling stock including mechanism carried by the rolling stock and embodying a 'record sheet holder movable by the accelerations and decelerations of the rollin stock, and a marker to impinge against the older when the latter moves to a redetermined extent.

3. An impact recor er for a moving mass including a record sheet holder carried by the mass but movable independently of the latter while the mass is in motion, a marker for engagement with the holder when the latter moves a pretermined distance, and clock mechanism operatively connected to the marker for moving the latter across the sheet holder.

4. An impact recorder for a moving mass including a record sheet holder secured to the mass but movable independently of the latter when the mass is in motion, a marker arranged to lie in proximity to said holder but engageable therewith onl when the holder moves to a predetermined extent, clock mechanism to feed the marker across the record sheet holder to fix the time of occurrence of impingement of the marker with the holder, and means to normally secure the holder from movement; in the absence of an appreciable impact sustained' by the mass. t

5. An impact recorder for railway rolling stock mcludmg recording mechanlsm carried by the rolling stock and embodying I a movable record sheet holder and a marker engageable with the holder onl when the latter moves into a predetermine zone.

6. An impact recorder for railwa rolling stock including recording mec anism; embodying a rotatable screw shaft with a marker mounted thereon, said mechanism also embodying a record sheet holder automatically movable by the rolling stock vibrations to bring the marker into engagement with the record sheet when the latter moves into a predetermined zone.

7. An impact recorder for .rolling stock including recording mechanism embodying a clock operated shaft equipped with a' marker automatically movable b rotation of the latter, and a record sheet iolder for engagement with the marker when the rolling stock sustains impacts of redetermined intensity and impacts excee ing a predetermined intensit 8. An impact recorder stylus automatically 'movable' into contact with the platen when't-he latter moves into apredetermined position.

9. An impact recorder including mechanism embodying a movable record sheet carrying platen and a stylus contacting -with the platen and engageable therewith when the platen reaches a redetermined position, and means cooperab e with the stylus for adjusting the point at which the platen is effective to urge the stylus into engagement therewith.

10. An impact recorder having a marking element constantl driven by a clock mechanism, a movab e platen engageable with the marking element when the platen 7 including a mov able record sheet carrying platen, and a moves a predetermined extent, and means JOHN B. BASKERVILLE. 

